My New, More Public Self, Part II

Yesterday evening a cameraman and producer from Fox News came to my house and interviewed me about my decision to join the Peace Corps, and my plans and expectations for my service. The local Peace Corps Public Information person came too.

I think the taping went pretty well. They wanted to tape me against a background that lent visual support to the theme of Peace Corps preparations, so we went out to my garage, which is the staging area for my packing. So my ugly garage will be on the TV too. The news segment that this interview will be a part of will be aired on Wednesday or Thursday, nationwide. Wow. My fifteen minutes of fame has arrived (and who knew ugly garages get 15 minutes too?).

After the interview, they shot a bit of footage of me practicing my Arabic calligraphy. When the Fox people left, the Peace Corps person hung around for a bit and we talked. This was deeply interesting, because we talked about a wide range of things, including what kinds of things can cause a volunteer "to E-T" (ET means they file for Early Termination of service), and what kinds of things make Peace Corps service more difficult for older volunteers (not the things you might expect). Older volunteers, she says, are more likely to chafe at the bureaucracy and authority of Peace Corps rules. This rings true for me; I've always been a bit of a rebel when it comes to dealing with authority. So it's good to be psychologically prepared for these realities. Older volunteers sometimes have difficulty befriending and bonding with their fellow volunteers, and can feel left out when younger volunteers "clique up" and may seem to be excluding them. I am glad that I've had so much experience working with young people through the University. That may help, but again, it's good to know in advance that I should bring a thick skin with me to the training. Every group is different, and you never know. Instead of being snubbed, maybe I'll be treated like a big sister. I'll have to go the extra mile to waive these difficulties and form my own special bond with my fellow trainees.

Another VERY interesting part of the conversation concerns my work assignment. When I was nominated, I was told by the recruiter that it was for a "special" assignment, about which I was told nothing except that such assignments were for people with very special backgrounds, and in this particular case, for someone with a background in visual arts. Then, when I was offered the invitation by the Placement person this April, she told me the assignment was for Small Business Development, which is a regular, not special, assignment. I have to admit I was a bit disappointed that my assignment wasn't going to be "special," but I was quite content with the idea of doing SBD with women artisans in Morocco, which is what she told me about the assignment. When I received my Invitation in the mail, the Work Assignment booklet was a xeroxed copy of what appeared to be standard Small Business Development information.

Well, it turns out that the SBD designation on my Invitation is because these special assignments (she called them "one-ninety-nines") are so rare that it's not likely a country director would create a work assignment booklet just for the very occasional one that comes through in their region. In fact, she said, I WAS nominated for one of these 199 assignments; she told me she had seen this on her computer when she pulled up my file.

This part of the conversation came up in the context of another reason why older volunteers often feel frustrated, which is that their very richness of experience makes it difficult to accept the demands of entry-level training. I had told her that this wouldn't be the case for me, as I had ZERO experience with small business management. I would be a beginner like everyone else. She looked a bit puzzled, and then started talking about the special assignments. They're so rare, she said, that in her own three years as a recruiter, before she took the Public Information job, she had never had occasion to nominate anyone for a 199.

So, wow! Now I DO feel extra special and very very curious about what the assignment could be. She said they look for someone with a very particular background, but unfortunately she couldn't tell me any more than that. I guess I will just have to wait and see. As IF I needed anything more to be excited about!